Indonesia's inconsistent play continues
Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The Indonesian bridge team beat Norway and Hong Kong on the second day of the Bermuda Bowl in Paris on Tuesday, but a shock defeat to Egypt was blamed for its failure to improve its placing.
In the first session, Henky Lasut/Eddy Manoppo and Santje Panelewen/Robert Tobing gained a narrow 16-14 win over Norway, which lined up Geir Helgemo/Tor Helnes and Erik Saelensminde/Boye Brogeland.
This may have been far from a major shock for the Norwegians as the encounter is still at the preliminary stage, but the win may be a consolation for the national team's loss in the quarterfinals of the 2000 championship in Bermuda.
Indonesia secured its second win on the day over Hong Kong, but the convincing 22-8 victory came back-to-back after an upset at the hands of African champion Egypt, a loss which exposed further the team's inconsistency at the tournament so far.
Indonesia, which fielded Denny Sacul/Franky Karwur in place of Santje/Robert stumbled to a 5-25 loss to Tarek Sadek/Ashraf Sadek and Waleed Ahmadi/Sheri Nagui.
Although Indonesia managed to regroup in the match against Hong Kong where they were up against Thomas Ng/K.L. Choy and Lawrence Lau/Alan Sze, the big loss to Egypt has virtually stopped them from taking a step farther.
"Our team did not look as good as they are. They untypically made small errors. They have played below their form over the last two days," Bert Toar Polii, the team's coach, said.
Bert said that freezing weather had also affected the team's performance.
"The distance of the venue from the hotel forces the players to get up early and that affects their physical condition," he said.
Indonesia remained in 11th place after the second day of the tournament, collecting 87 points. Egypt and the United States II shared the top place with 119 points followed by Poland with 114 points.
France, Guadaloupe and Argentina were Indonesia's next opponents on Wednesday. The matches were still continuing at the time of going to press.
Despite the mediocre run, Indonesian team official Ananta Wijaya remained optimistic of a good overall result.
"Given the points after six sessions have been completed, we can see that there is quite a good chance for Henky Lasut and the team to get into the top eight. This is what we have been looking for," Ananta said.
"Hopefully, they will regain their best form in time so that it will be easier for them to retain the top spot," he said, recalling Indonesian triumph at the Lausanne Grand Prix -- claimed as the unofficial World Cup -- last year.
The Indonesian female players appear to be putting in a dismal run in their Venice Cup campaign. Competing in an 18-strong field, Lusje Bojoh and friends have given their best only to end up next to bottom on the provisional standings at 61 points.
Provisional standings (after two days of competition)
Bermuda Bowl: 1/2. Egypt/U.S. II, 119 VP (Victory Points), 3. Poland 114 VP, 4. Italy 112 VP, 5. France 105 VP, 6. U.S. I 98 VP, 7. Brazil 97 VP, 8. Japan 96 VP, 9. Norway 92 VP, 10. Israel 90 VP, 11. Indonesia 87 VP, 12. India 86 VP, 13. Argentina 81 VP, 14. Russia 71.1 VP, 15. Guadaloupe 64 VP, 16. Australia 62.9 VP, 17. New Zealand 61 VP, 18. Hong Kong 57 points.
Venice Cup: 1. France 123 VP, 2. China 119 VP, 3/4. Britain, South Africa 111 VP, 5. Austria 109 VP, 6. U.S. I 108 VP, 7. Israel 105 VP, 8. U.S. II 92 VP, 9. Germany 90 VP, 10. Italy 81 VP 11. Brazil 76 VP, 12. Canada 74.6 VP, 13. Australia 74 VP, 14. Japan 73 VP, 15. Netherlands 71 VP, 16. India 62.4 VP, 17. Indonesia 61 VP, 18. Venezuela 55 VP.